The insider’s scoop about an Atlanta weekend is that the resident and the visitor have a lot in common. Both find themselves at one of the crossroads of American 21^stcentury culture, and this brings a feeling like that of sitting down to a beautifully set table. There are personal joys to experience, pleasures to share, and surprises to discover, all in a setting that combines relaxation and stimulation like that of a cocktail mixed by an expert.

Let’s imagine we’re setting out from one of the luxury condos for sale in Midtown Atlanta, or from the Loews Atlanta Hotel, situated on the floors below the lovely private residences at 1065 Midtown. Both properties are known for being nestled among the finest concentration of things to do in Atlanta, and for their views of our precious Piedmont Park.

As evening approaches on Friday, it’s the perfect time to gather with friends, enjoy their company, and put the finishing touches on your plans for the weekend. The places that are richly arrayed around you in Midtown, and in nearby neighborhoods, are here because Atlanta has prospered uniquely from the renewed interest in city living. The green spaces, the office and retail facilities, and the residential opportunities in restored and renovated historic spaces were all here as the canvas, when the artistic and enterprising impulse to return from the suburbs, to a more walkable lifestyle, became a generational trend. The obvious advantages of this became one of the foundations of the value of Midtown Atlanta real estate.

Daylight lasts long into the evening this time of year, and so our first stop Friday evening could be one of the establishments that makes dining and drinking al frescoa pleasure, where the warmth among us matches the warmth around us. The King and Duke, and Whiskey Bluebeckon, up in Buckhead. For Midtown, al frescocan sometimes mean “rooftop,” as it does at the Renaissance Midtown, or in a more casual way at Six Feet Under, in West Midtown. A terrific list of options was published recently by Thrillist, and the selection is wide.

Later Friday night might be a good time to catch a ticket that would be harder to get on Saturday, like The Book of Mormon at our historic Fox Theatre. Here’s a good example of what makes this beautifully restored Moroccan fantasy and former movie palace exceptionally relevant today. A New York cast in a smash hit that’s still a tough ticket to get on Broadway, playing here in Atlanta for just a week, to audiences that are in a position to grab it.

Saturday morning is for the Peachtree Road Farmers Market. The town’s biggest producer-only market for fruits and vegetables is also a fine place for your morning coffee, some locally baked breakfast, and a stroll through Buckhead at the moment when its enterprising vibe begins to take it easy. Saturday night is not, as our famous resident Elton John once sang, “All Right for Fighting.” Rather, it’s a good night to consider the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra or the Alliance Theatre at our beloved Woodruff Arts Center in the High Museum of Art. People there will gladly advise you where to go after, for something noisier, if you wish.

For Sunday brunch, Nine Mile Station, on the rooftop of Ponce City Market, is hip and casual. If you’ve seen enough of rooftops for the weekend, then try the Highland Bakery. Eater Atlantahas a baker’s dozen of other ideas for the best Sunday brunch you’ve had in Atlanta.

Before we disengage for some quiet time on Sunday, before starting the busy week ahead, why not stroll the Atlanta History Center? The Museum and grounds offer an uncommonly rewarding time, whether you focus on a permanent exhibit, like the exceptional account of golf’s greatest sportsman, Bobby Jones, a special event, or one of the installations that tell stories we find so enriching, residents and visitors alike.

If the future is your mood instead, then look into touring our fresh Mercedes-Benz Stadium. It’s a triumph of architecture, a magnet for economic and neighborhood development, and the venue for upcoming games that will draw the attention of the nation and the world.

A successful young movie producer we know started his career in an ad agency. On the phone one day a few years ago, he said, “Well, I’ve got to go. I’m going to meet with the production manager. I don’t want the first time I meet him to be when I need something from him.” The foresight of making friends is one of the wisdoms we can draw from the examples of successful people. And successful cities. “The time to make friends is before you need them.”

This kind of intelligence runs throughout the story of Atlanta, through the years as well as every day this week. “What you know” certainly is important here; it’s been a hotbed of progress from the very beginning. Yet, whom you know pops up so often in the case histories of enterprise and development here. It certainly is one of the reasons that so many successful projects here are public-private endeavors where community groups, or the city itself, partnered with business interests to achieve goals they held in common. It’s behind many of the work-play-live-thrive neighborhoods that flourish now in Midtown Atlanta real estate.

Drawn Together with a Belt of Green

Because cars are compartments, setting each traveler or party apart from other people, even when they’re going the same way, the preference many young Atlantans have today for living where they can walk or bike to work is proving a renaissance for metropolitan Atlanta. Inspiring and facilitating this lifestyle – and forming a focus for friendships – is the Beltline.

Atlanta’s “emerald necklace” – the walking, biking, and recreation trails of the Beltline – have already fueled the prosperity of neighborhoods alongside it and has become the basis for planned developments now in progress. This direction continues, and, on completion, the Beltline will connect 45 neighborhoods with 22 miles of foot-friendly, bike-friendly, flower-and-tree-friendly travel. The conversations and lunches and picnics along the way are already birthplace of companies, projects, and developments. Friendships formed here are becoming very much part of the beating heart of Atlanta enterprise.

Good Company and a Place to Enjoy It

Atlanta has for decades been known for a vibrant bar and restaurant scene, and as we’ve taken our place among world capitals of commerce, the influences on cuisine are nothing short of delicious. To name just one example for now, the Barcelona Wine Bar, brings the casual, yet adventurous custom of tapas from Catalonia to the Westside near Midtown, together with their selection of interesting wines.

And returning all the way back from Catalonia.

Let’s get acquainted and begin to talk about what the special energy of Atlanta – including the Atlanta capacity for friendship – can mean for your home or investment plans.

A New Street-Level Experience Grows in Midtown

Public transport, walkability, streetscapes – everything from trees to traffic signals – all have a role to play in the 30 public improvements planned for 2018 in Midtown. And this year is just one snapshot in the 40 years of concerted attention devoted by Atlanta’s Midtown Alliance, with steady, visible, and bankable impact on Midtown Atlanta real estate.

Continually since 1978, the condos for sale in Midtown Atlanta, as well as all manner of commercial real estate capacity and the opportunities for art, culture, entertainment, and cuisine that go with them, have benefitted from the grand alliance of more than 70 leaders of business and industry to devote their time and talent to the Midtown Alliance. The achievements are impressive. And the sheer momentum of progress takes more than a glimpse to fully appreciate.

The Way People Experience Midtown

By focusing on the human experience of living, working, playing, and enjoying life in Midtown, the work of the Alliance has borne fruit in many ways. Recreational spaces are blended now with commerce, below the high-energy skyline. Transit stations become ever-more efficient and admirable. Street-level lighting and public art, together with places to take a break, make walking a more and more viable and enjoyable choice throughout Midtown, thanks to these initiatives. Designs are in progress for a proposed linear park that would transform the connections among street corridors and the three MARTA stations that link Midtown with other neighborhoods.

And the Way Atlanta Cooperates to Bring it to Life

Today, Midtown Atlanta is increasingly becoming the kind of community where life transcends compartments, where living and working are not separated by a daily migration. Long the ideal of the most advanced planners and designers, Midtown is achieving this vision without the benefit of a “clean sheet of paper.” Rather, thanks to the dialogue and cooperation of the best there is, in Atlanta’s broad-shouldered business community, Midtown Atlanta is achieving that vision with steady evolution and without disruption.

The aiming point that unites these decades or cooperation, Blueprint Midtown, is reviewed, reinforced, and refreshed regularly in a guided process that reaps the benefits of Atlanta’s best minds. Since 2000, it has attracted more than $4.5 billion in new investment and opportunities. This year’s streetscape projects and programs alone will add $15.7 million to that investment.

New to the Neighborhood: The Advantages of a Good Boundary

A different solution is moving forward to refresh a portion of Peachtree Street, north of 17^th Street, that called for a new approach to this opportune location. The three buildings that span from 1389 to 1409 Peachtree will become a single-office structure that harmonizes with the neighborhood – and with the neighbors – further supporting the growing value of Midtown Atlanta real estate.

Named the Boundary, the new building will offer 150,000 square feet of office space, with a coveted Peachtree Street address, to businesses seeking the kind of footing that lends authenticity in Atlanta. Design is likely to fulfill the desire for creative and contemporary workspace for knowledge-based businesses, a key to the chemistry of Atlanta’s growth and enterprise.

In line with that spirit, the Boundary will undoubtedly include some form of urban market, food hall, and coffee shop, the proven support systems of 21^st Century business.

If at First…

Plans for the Boundary are the worthy successors of a different scheme that was proposed for the site in 2016. That plan, for a towering high-rise that added a hotel and significant ground-floor retail to the block, did not go forward, in part because it may have been too much too soon for neighboring blocks, and for the prestigious nearby community of Ansley Park.

Parkside Partners, developers of the Boundary, have more than 35 properties and a million square feet in their portfolio. This experience undoubtedly played a role, enabling them to devise a new approach to the Peachtree property that collaborated effectively with community interests.

Green Eases the Way

One feature of the Boundary design that helped achieve the needed cooperation is a 330-foot linear park that parallels Peachtree Street. This is one more splash of green in an ever-growing recognition that lifestyle is the magnet for people who drive business and economic growth in the digital age, surely one of the factors that reinforce the growing value of the condos for sale in Midtown Atlanta.

Atlanta is continuing to show its exceptional sense of proportion in growing greener as it goes. For such a notoriously muscular business town, this might at first seem surprising, but, in fact, it is just today’s version of wise.

 So Near and So Nearly Perfect

A Midtown Atlanta dining guide would have to be very big or very selective, or both, and it might easily become too large to lift. The choices are so numerous and the offerings are so excellent that it’s best to think of dining anywhere near the numerous condos for sale in Midtown Atlanta in terms of the whole atmosphere they breathe across the neighborhood.

Altogether, the ways to enjoy a meal, a snack, or a drink in the neighborhood make up an example of what the best designers call “the new luxury.” It’s not about flash or status so much as about an honest, authentic experience. In that sense, the dining options in Midtown harmonize with the considerate, thoughtful luxury of the apartments at 1065 Midtown, so let’s use that as our “ground zero” and explore a few of the restaurants nearby.

As Close as Can Be

Among the nearest of all, the Saltwood Charcuterie and Bar is located in the Loews Atlanta Hotel. Though the Loews is one of Atlanta’s grand hotels, and a kind of crossroads to the world, the relaxed atmosphere at the Saltwood is very much part of its appeal. The menu makes it versatile, with locally sourced small plates, meals, and specialty cocktails presented with equal aplomb.

Café Intermezzo is also at the Loews, and, as its name suggests, is a welcome break, because it makes modern coffee establishments look like newcomers by comparison. Styled from the 300-year-old tradition of European coffeehouses – and the place they occupy in the lives of their communities – Café Intermezzo is refreshing in more ways than one. It’s been more than 45 years since founder Brian Olsen brought the inspiration back from his research in Germany and Austria, so the experience has stood the test of time.

And Overseas Without a Passport

RA Sushi Bar is another nearby option, where Midtown residents enjoy Japanese fusion dishes as well as classic sushi. Happy hours live up to their name. Bulla Gastrobar too is a neighborhood adventure, this time with a Spanish flair. Tapas and outdoor seating are among the options, yet the kind of dinner that keeps Madrid residents talking ’til 10 is another way to enjoy a visit to Bulla.

The arriving jets at Atlanta’s Hartsfield International Airport are like returning fishing boats to The Oceanaire, the outstanding seafood restaurant of Midtown Atlanta. The finest catches of the day, from the most-reputable fisheries, are perused carefully for each day’s offerings. The Oceanaire is an award-winner from ZAGAT, Wine Spectator, Jezebel, and Atlanta Magazine. Executive Chef Glenn Mills is an Atlanta native, and his passion for freshness and variety in seafood meets up with a modern American sense of cuisine that has a dash of regional influence, too.

The impact of fine cuisine and imaginative hospitality on the value of Midtown Atlanta real estate is a professional factor, as well as a pleasure for us. If you’d like to discuss the opportunities this might present to you, whether for living or investment, please contact us.

40 Years of Change in Midtown Atlanta

Creating a livable, loveable community has been the full-time job of the Midtown Alliance since the non-profit, membership organization was formed in 1978 by a coalition of Atlanta business and community leaders. The success of their vision and diligence is all around the fortunate folks who live in, work in, or visit Midtown today. And the value of Midtown Atlanta real estate has been driven in no small part by their efforts.

“The buzz” began on college campuses across the nation in the mid-70s – there was something suddenly cool about living in Atlanta. Careers were taking off there. And from within that youthful awakening, a fearless few glimpsed the opportunity to rediscover city living as a standard of sophistication to rival and balance the suburbs.

Not Instead of Suburban Living, But Alongside It

A mid-century, suburban trend that was nearly two decades old at the time carried on apace. In Atlanta, there flourished a standard for single-family homes so attractive that corporate headquarters in New York, L.A., and Chicago knew well that when you transferred a rising corporate star to Atlanta, you’d better be ready for him or her to stay there, because leaving was rarely an option once they’d tasted Atlanta living.

In addition to the porches, lawns, and pools that magnetized young executives, Atlanta increasingly offered condos for sale in Midtown Atlanta that put creative people near the art, entertainment, cuisine, and culture that nourished and sustained the visions they had for their lives and their city. It was from within these visions, and among the civic leaders who recognized them that the Midtown Alliance was formed.

It Means What a City Should Mean

The Midtown Atlanta of today is a pleasant, percolating blend of residences and businesses, culture and retail, hotels and restaurants, greenspaces and high-rise exultation, all connected by shaded walks, with trees along the way. The willingness and ability of community and business leaders to work together in achieving this, in the scope of the Midtown Alliance, is proven by the surroundings we enjoy here today.

The master plan that set these visions in motion is now in its third generation. Blueprint Midtown III is the how-to of the live, learn, work, and play community that emerged. It’s been said that the biggest difference between Blueprint Midtown and other city’s master plans is that this one got implemented. Among its accomplishments was the largest rezoning in the city’s history, and more than $4.5 billion in new investment since 1997.

The sheer relevance of Midtown Atlanta, and its exuberant quality of life, have attracted people who continue inventing the 21^st Century. If you’re interested in the energy and direction of the future, we’d like to discuss that. Just call us at 404.410.4481 or register your interest here.

We were recently featured in the March edition of the Men’s Book! A wonderful article written by Wendy Bowman noted 1065 Midtown as one of Atlanta’s “latest man-friendly listings.” In case you missed it, we’ll give you our favorite highlights from the piece:

• A quote by Lonnie Bryant, our sales director, describes the condo by stating, “The views of Piedmont Park are impeccable. The 12-foot floor-to-ceiling windows offer panoramic views of Midtown and Atlanta.”
• A stunning living space designed by Rule Joy Trammell + Rubio
• A full chef’s kitchen featuring custom cabinets and estate-grade granite
• Exquisite baths with frameless glass showers and stand-alone tubs
• 1065’s exclusive resident perks including access to Exhale spa, a 24-hour concierge, and a rooftop pool

If that sounds nothing short of amazing to you, schedule a tour with us today so you can see it for yourself!

As the Marcia Wood Pop-Up Gallery comes to a close, we will be hosting a closing event to celebrate the seven fantastic weeks we’ve had with the gallery in one of our 3-bedroom model homes. The art collection installed is absolutely stunning and features works from 14 artists and is worth over 220k. Between these one-of-a-kind works and the unparalleled views of the city, the pop-up is a “must-see” in Midtown.

Join us on Thursday, February 2 from 5 to 7 p.m. for light bites, cocktails and a chance to mingle with a few of the artists featured in the gallery! Complimentary valet will be available and space is limited, so please RSVP to RSVP@LizLapidusPR.com to let us know you are coming!